Unlike powder cocaine, Ireland’s crack cocaine problem is not distributed evenly across society. Why and how has the crisis developed? And why is crack addiction such a difficult drug to treat? And why are homeless women turning to crack cocaine in such numbers? Eddie Mullins, who spent much of his career working in the prison service, becoming the governor of Mountjoy jail, now heads up Merchants Quay Ireland, the Dublin-based charity offering services to homeless people and drug users. He describes the impact of the surging crack cocaine crisis on users and the wider community.

Listen to: In the News podcast: Crack cocaine surge looks very like heroin epidemic of the 1980s (24 minutes).